10 years later: lessons remainJust over 10 years ago, a ship carrying soybeans went aground in Makushin Bay on Unalaska Island in the Aleutian Chain during a big storm. Air Station Kodiak responded with a Jayhawk helicopter along with the cutter Alex Haley. Through the wind and squalls and approaching darkness, the Coast Guard worked to get the crew of the Selendang Ayu off the boat. After taking all of the crew off the ship except the captain...

Kodiak alumni star in collegeThree members off of last year’s Kodiak High School’s undefeated girls basketball team had a busy weekend at the collegiate level. In Anchorage, Jerica Nelson produced her best moments in a Seawolves uniform, playing three games in three days. In her first game, on Friday, the University of Alaska Anchorage freshman, netted five points, four assists, three steals and two rebounds in her squad’s 90-49 victory over ...

Public Safety Blotter: Dec. 23Dec. 12 Around 2:20 a.m., police conducted three bar checks downtown. At 2:59 a.m., a bear was seen on Mylark Lane. It ran into the woods. At 9:31 a.m., a caller reported an abandoned vehicle. It’s under investigation. At 11:03 a.m., police patrolled Bells Flats for animal violations. At 11:47 a.m., a caller reported loose chickens in the Ptarmigan Pass area. They were gone when police arrived. At 11:55 a.m., a wa...

Kodiak Island Births: Dec. 23Emily Aurora Lawrence was born at 8:13 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014, to Amanda and Jarred Lawrence. She weighed 7 pounds, 4.6 ounces and measured 20.5 inches long. Her parents are originally from Vermont and Pennsylvania and now live in Kodiak. Her mother and father work for the United States Coast Guard. Proud grandparents are Vickie and Melun Lawrence of Vermont and Upstate New York and Theresa Hyjurick and Ed...

Outdoor Kodiak: Get outdoors for the holidayAs surely as day follows night, the anticipation and excitement of Christmas morning passes. The gifts are all opened, the house is restored to order, and phone calls to family and friends are completed. Certainly there’s the work and anticipation of the evening feast, and of course there will be football on television. Christmas morning is a hard act to follow. But in our household, it’s just the beginning of the...

4 fishermen receive Carnegie Medal for Kodiak fishing boat rescueFour fishermen who risked their lives and saved five men during a severe winter storm off Kodiak Island in 2012 received the Carnegie Medal on Monday. Daniel Hardwick and Gregory Plancich, both of Vashon, Washington, along with Jim Fultz of Siletz, Oregon, and Wayne Kitt of Loon Lake, Washington, received the distinction, given to people in the United States and Canada who risk their lives to save others. The meda...

DECK THE DOCK: Festival lights up faces of children, parents with holiday cheersHundreds of people crowded the docks of St. Paul and St. Herman harbor Saturday evening to pick their favorite decorated boat at the second annual Harbor Lights Festival, sponsored by the Kodiak Maritime Museum. The rain that sprinkled off and on throughout the evening didn't stop the Christmas cheer. One boat had a Santa in the crow's nest along with a Santa in an airplane on deck. Another boat had Santa in a ski...

Borough approves dock fabrication, Womens Bay shelterThe Kodiak Island Borough Assembly approved two contracts Thursday, one for fabrication of a new dock in Anton Larsen Bay and one for the construction of an emergency shelter in Womens Bay. The new dock will replace the current dock in Anton Larsen Bay. It will be 80 feet long and 12 feet wide, larger than the existing 60 feet by 10 feet dock. Ranier Welding of Washington was chosen as the winning bidder for $554,...

Harbor security cameras to cost $4,500The installation of 16 cameras around St. Paul Harbor will enhance security but not replace foot patrols by harbor officers at St. Paul Harbor, Kodiak deputy harbormaster Derrick Magnuson told the Port and Harbor Advisory Board Friday. The harbormaster’s office expects the equipment for this first stage of the security-enhancement project to cost about $4,500, Magnuson said. Harbor office employees will carry out ...